Chapter 151: Chapter 151: If I Hadn’t Come Back, How Long Were You Going to Cry There?

Xi Zirong was telling the truth. When he first saw Xu Su walk away, his initial reaction was to follow her. But he was afraid of making her even angrier, and while he hesitated, Xu Su disappeared from sight.

Then, he couldn’t help but squat down and start crying. As he cried, his mind uncontrollably drifted to Xu Su. He wondered if she had left the school grounds by now, if she had met that “ordinary friend” from the phone call.

The more he thought about it, the more miserable he felt.

He was also afraid that she was truly angry and would use this as an opportunity to leave him.

In Xi Zirong’s eyes, Xu Su always seemed on the verge of breaking up with him.

She was too cold and detached. He felt like he was the only one trying to maintain their relationship.

“…” Xu Su caressed his face. The tear tracks on the young man’s cheeks had already vanished.

Her voice was a little stern. “If I hadn’t come back, how long were you planning to cry there?”

Xi Zirong was silent for a long time.

He didn’t know what he would have done if she hadn’t come back.

Whenever it came to Xu Su, the good habit of staying calm in any situation that Xi Zirong had cultivated since childhood completely disappeared. All that was left was an uncontrollable sense of grievance and pain.

His silent, sullen look was so pitiful that Xu Su felt a bit helpless. Finally, she directly explained why she had gone out.

“The person who called me really is just an ordinary friend. He doesn’t like me, and there’s no way I could ever like him. Xi Zirong, he’s not your love rival. Please believe me, okay?”

“Mhm,” Xi Zirong mumbled, nodding. His hands slowly tightened around Xu Su’s waist. “Can you tell me what he gave you?”

“…” ’Such a jealous boy.’ He had agreed readily enough, but it was obvious he still minded.

Xu Su soothed him in a low voice, “He gave me a watch, but don’t worry, I won’t wear it. I’ll only wear the one you gave me.”

’She had no intention of showing him the watch Shen Chen had given her. It was quite valuable, and Xi Zirong wasn’t some naive, poor student. If she had to explain everything slowly, she feared they’d be up all night.’

She buried her face in his chest, sensing his emotions, and spoke slowly. “I know what’s bothering you. It’s my fault for not doing better. I’ll change. Xi Zirong, don’t cry secretly anymore. It really broke my heart just now.”

’It really did break my heart…’

Thinking about Xi Zirong squatting there crying alone after she left, Xu Su felt like the worst person alive, a complete jerk.

“Does your face hurt? Did I slap you too hard just now?”

’Could she have hit him so hard that she made him cry?’

’Xu Su began to doubt her own strength…’

She reached out to touch the side of Xi Zirong’s face that she had slapped, but before she could feel anything, he caught her hand.

“It doesn’t hurt. I did something wrong, so you were right to hit me.” Xi Zirong brought his face closer to look at Xu Su. “Did I scare you? I’m sorry, Susu. I promise it won’t happen again.”

“And please don’t leave me behind and walk off alone again, okay? It makes me feel awful. It really, really does.”

His face was inches away, his eyes filled with a clearly visible love. Xu Su felt a little captivated. She tilted her head up to give him a quick kiss before saying, “Okay, I believe you. But, Xi Zirong, if you act like this again, I’ll be truly angry.”

Xi Zirong chuckled and kissed her back. “I won’t make you angry, Susu. I can’t bear to make you angry. You should feel bad for me more often, too. I’m so happy that you feel bad for me…”

“…”

This was the first argument they’d had since they started dating, and they made up the very same day. Their sweet, lovey-dovey romance continued.

After this incident, Xu Su found that her relationship with Xi Zirong seemed to have become more stable.

As if he had discovered Xu Su’s soft spot, Xi Zirong started to learn how to act cute and spoiled from time to time in their interactions.

He loved seeing the indulgent look on Xu Su’s face. Only then could Xi Zirong be sure that he was loved, that he was special in her heart.

「Time flew by, and soon it was early May.」 This year, classes were held as usual during the May Day holiday.

Xu Su’s eighteenth birthday also arrived as expected.

They had been classmates for two years and were best friends who told each other everything. Huang Feng and Qian Jia only found out about Xu Su’s birthday after it had passed last year. They threw a huge fit at the time, and only after they each gave her a belated gift did they haughtily forgive Xu Su for not telling them and celebrating her birthday alone.

This year, Huang Feng and Qian Jia prepared their birthday gifts well in advance. As high school students without much money, the gifts they gave were practical little things from the two-yuan shops at the school gate. A coin purse or a small mirror was considered a very nice birthday present.

As her boyfriend, Xi Zirong’s gift was especially different.

Xu Su had specifically told him that it’s the thought that counts and that the gift absolutely could not be too expensive.

So, under the condition that he couldn’t spend too much, Xi Zirong took her to the commercial street across from First High School during their lunch break on May 5th.

In a jewelry store, Xi Zirong picked out a pair of platinum studs and had the owner pierce Xu Su’s ears.

Xu Su: “…”

’It was rather embarrassing. Here she was, an eighteen-year-old girl, and she didn’t even have her ears pierced…’

In her previous life, she hadn’t gotten her ears pierced until college, when her roommate dragged her to do it. Back then, she wore cheap studs for too long, and her newly pierced ears became so swollen and painful that they started to ooze pus. When Zhou Mochen came looking for her, he happened to see it and threw a huge fit.

That was the first time Zhou Mochen had ever gotten angry at her. It wasn’t the kind of rage with shouting and yelling, but a silent fury, his face dark as he stared her down, which was somehow more intimidating.

At the time, she really couldn’t understand what he was so furious about. After all, it wasn’t *his* ears that were hurting.

In that period, Zhou Mochen hid his love so well that Xu Su thought his affection for her was shallow, nothing more than a rich young master’s amusement.

She had even held onto the hope that she could one day return to a normal life…

That very afternoon after she came back from getting her ears pierced, some observant classmates noticed that Xu Su was actually wearing earrings.

Actually, in this era, it was already very popular for female students to wear earrings.

The K-drama *My Girl* was all the rage, and the second male lead, Lee Joon-gi, who was even more popular than the main lead, wore an earring.

Xu Su even knew that *My Lucky Star* was coming out this year. When it did, wouldn’t everyone on the street be wearing a few earrings?

Some people even got a whole row of piercings on one ear, but Xu Su had no such intention. ’Just looking at it makes me ache.’

That night, when she was washing up, Xu Su was especially careful to avoid getting her ears wet.

Although the studs this time were made of good material and the piercing had been thoroughly sanitized, the weather was getting hotter. To avoid a repeat of the pain from an infected piercing, it was better to be careful.

When Huang Feng came back from evening self-study, she made a point of leaning close to Xu Su, staring at her earrings with a grin. “I finally understand what the celebrity effect is! The news that you’re wearing earrings spread to our class in a single afternoon. I bet a bunch of girls in class will be wearing earrings in the next couple of days. Don’t you believe me?”

Xu Su was speechless. “Don’t be so dramatic.”

It was true that several girls from the honors class had come to ask her where she got her ears pierced today, but it couldn’t possibly be influencing other classes, could it…

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